As the cold weather began to set in in Canada and before the pandemic forced us all to confine ourselves once again, the JUMP OFF team had one last blast before the return of slightly milder temperatures. Adrenaline junkies, a wasteland and a gigantic crane. That’s all we needed.
Credit : Jeremie Perreault
Invited by Gaétan Roy to use one of his cranes on his field in Chelsea, Outaouais, the BASE jumpers jumped off a 275-ton GMK crane, the basket having been installed at 344 feet in the air. An ideal playground.
“Usually, the difficulty of jumping from a crane is getting to the top because you’re not supposed to be there, says Catherine Vaillancourt-Roy in the episode. But now we’re lucky enough to have someone to lend us his crane!”
Phil Boisjoli andCatherine Vaillancourt-Roy
Credit : Jeremie Perreault
The conditions were right for Catherine, Phil Bois Joly and Bertrand Cloutier to jump at will. But above all, given the height and the space between the crane boom and the base jumpers, it was possible for them to perform some interesting tricks.
“When you jump from the tower of the Olympic Stadium, the parachute opens right away. At the City of Energy, you jump with the small parachute in your hand.”
Raphael Couroux
Credit : Jeremie Perreault
Except that in Chelsea, these adrenaline junkies had the chance to take some calculated risks. Jumping with a parachute is not easy since the equipment, ropes and canopy make the maneuvers extremely difficult. And when you jump from 344 feet, you can’t afford to make a mistake.
1-TARD – Totally Awesome Rapid Deployment : “You put on your harness and hold your parachute in your hand. While jumping, you throw your parachute above you and you find yourself in a rapid descent.”
2-Rollover : “The risers of your parachute are held by the lines and the parachute is all open below you. You find yourself doing a frontflip while diving and the parachute opens at the end of the rotation. For this kind of jump you need a headwind or no wind at all.”
3-Waterfall : “There are 3 people,” explains Bertrand Cloutier. One holds the parachute of the other one who holds the parachute of the other one. It’s really a friendship jump. It’s a bit like holding each other’s life in your hands. It’s like sealing your friendship with the other person by showing that you trust them. It can be deadly too…”
“You really need to do this with someone you trust, so it was sure to be Phil for me” said Catherine.
4-Twinner : Facing the void, the skydiver launches himself with his feet in front to perform a complete vertical rotation. It’s a dangerous maneuver because your head gets very close to the edge you’re jumping from.
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To find out if our BASE jumpers have achieved their goals, take a look at the full episode right here. And to know more about Catherine Vaillancourt, click here.